LIBR 200: Bloggers and Emerging Technologies

Bloggers & Emerging Technology: Adaptability is King

Bloggers are, often by design, a tech savvy group. They tend to be more involved in the changing digital scene than their readers, because changes affect them more acutely than other creative modes. Bloggers depend on technology to reach their audiences, so as a result they are more in tune with the tweaks and upgrades their platform offers in order to improve their interface.

This means also that bloggers must anticipate change and evolve as needed or be left behind. Unlike other media, which moves slowly toward emerging technology, bloggers are at the mercy of WordPress, Blogger and Tumblr to make decisions for them on functionality–which may or may not be helpful in the short-term.

Bloggers must also leverage outside emerging technologies to reach readers on separate platforms. Bloggers are excellent at cross branding because often they are users of both technologies (whether it is Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or LinkedIn).

Bloggers also know their followers are adapting to outside changes like the shift to mobile and meet them halfway by making their blogs mobile-friendly and their urls Twitter-small.

Below is an infographic of emerging technologies that challenge bloggers everyday. Bloggers juggle apps, cross-platform management, solving their own IT issues, and changes in search algorithms. Not every blogger is especially tech inclined. In fact, many blogs show their age with their functionality and design, depending on the interest of the blogger to keep up with technology. If a blogger is disinterested in looking fresh, they can still offer important content, though often books and blogs are judged by their cover.